The news in this publica
tion is released for the press on
the date indicated below.
the university of north CAROLINA
NEWS LETTER
MARCH 29, 1916
Published weekly by the
University of North Carolina
for its Bureau of Extension.
CHAPEL HH.L, N. C.
VOL. n, NO. 18
Kditorial Boardi K. C. Branson, J. J. cleR, HamiltKm, U R.
WilsoD, L. A. WilliHras, K. H. Thornton, W. M. B it.er«d bs seoond-olasa matter November 14, 1914, at the postotHce at Chapel Hill, N. C., under the act of Aujnist 24,1913
NORTH CAROLINA CLUB STUDIES
$5,000 A YEAR FOR THE
NEWS LETTER
It is not yet in hand, but .ludge Win.
V. Bynnin’s letter to The News Letter
editor.^ bring:.s it within the range of pos-
.sibility. That is to say, if thert; are (ither
generous people in Nortli Carolina, with
means to spare, who hold The News Let
ter in like e.steeni.
The University is (conducting no can
vass to tliis end. We are simply giving
Judge Bynum’s letter tj the public, and
holding our breath the while.
Jud^e Bynum’s Offer
“•‘In the last number of the Newsl^etter
you note two gifts, one for JilO and one
for $25, and w'onder what immense
amount of good could be accomplished if
the News Jxitter had an annual income of
$5,000. [ have written you heretofore
my estimate of the immense amount of
«ood this little .slieet is doing and have
>expre.ssed the wish that it could be placed
in tlie hands of every farmer and busi
ness man in the State. I writ* now
■merely to say that I will gladly be one of
tifty persons to give lifOO annually for live
years for the jjublication and circulation
.of this-ihvaluable papei-. This would in
sure you for at least live years the annual
income desired. With kindest regards, I
remain. Very truly yours,
“WM. P. BY.VUM. '
I ^ our school is doubtless enrolled a.« a
j member of the Debating Union and you
I should not miss the opportimity of being
I pn sent at the .lebate on March 31.
COMMENCEMENT SPEAKERS
Member.s of the faculty of the Univer
sity will this spring, under the auspices
of the Bureau of Extension, deliver com
mencement addressees at quite a number
of schools in various .sections of the State.
Should you Ijc interested in securing such
an addre.s.s for your school or community,
writx' at an early date to the liureau of
Kxtension, Chapi! Hill, N, C.
EXTENSION LECTURES
l>r. L A. Williams, of the University
faculty, will delivei' two lettures before
the Baptist Orphanage at Thomasville on
April 14. In the afternoon he will lecture
to the te^ichers and workers on ‘Work,
Play, and Drudgery." In the evening he
will letiture to the entire institution on
“James Whitcomb Uiley, the Child’s
Poet. ’ ■
Dr. Archibald Henderson will deliver
the address at the commencement of the
Rowan county sciiools, Salisbury, April?.
; NEIGHBORLY APPROVAL
The Chapel Hill Realty Company hands
ris $10.00 towards paying the expense of
.«tirculating The University News Ijetter
.^imong the farmers and business people
of Orange county.
.(This w’ith other similar contributions
4lismisses our postage bill for the year
Sind leaves something over for the print
ing bill. To all our approving friends we
offer unlimited gratitude.
s
HIGH SCHOOL CONTESTS
Much interest is being taken in the
athletic contests for North Carolijia high
sciiools which will be held on Emerson
Athletic Field of the State University on
April 14. These are thy Brst annual in-
ter-scholastic tennis tournament and the
I fourth annual inter-scholastic track meet,
j Among the schools expecting to send rep-
j resentatives are: Greensboro, Graham,
I Burlington, Chapel Hill, Trinity Park,
I High Point, Charlotte, Hunter.sville,
I Hillsboro, Piedmont. Normal College,
Wilmington, Siler City, Troy, Seltna,
Raleigh, Durham, and Friendship.
A NATIONAL NECESSITY
Dr. Charles W. Eliot
Believing that ttgrii-.ulture is the fun
damental industry, and that, like all
other industries, it needs souud bank
ing, and cooperation in buying and
s!Hing, 1 certainly a)>prove of the
banker-farmer movement, and hopi' it
will succed in making American farm
ing Mion- productive and the life of the
farmer’s family mort? enjoyable.
The evils of th> factory system and
ot urlian life need to l>e ofl'set by a
large increase in the attractions, both
material and spiritual, of life on the
farm. —The Baiiker-Karmer.
UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
LETTER SERIES NO. *7
is illustrated by a leaflet issued by the j
Stah; Insurance Department on Safer and i
Better School Buildings, j
It is not a plea for districts to take out
tire insurance {K)hcies covering the loss in
case of fire, but is a plea for the congtruc-
tion of buildings in such a way that the ,
hazard of children’s losing their lives by 1
fires in school buildingM ujay be reducei
to a minimum.
The leaflet contains definite instructions
regarding the proper constrvic.tion of
school buildings with this end in view.
Write to Mr. James R. Young at Raleigh
for copies of the leaflet, .An ounce of pre-
j vention is worth a pound of cure, you
know.
OUR CITY SCHOOLS
Two Facts To Remember
If our city superintendents are to make
their efl'orts I'ount }>roi-)erly, they must be
free from usurpation of authority by tlie
school board. But they must themselves
be fitted to use power and responsibility.
In tins connection, we must keep in mind
two esso-ntial things.
Professional Knowledge
The first of tfiese i.« that the supt>rin-
tendent must know his biisiue.ss. He must
have gained, either in a fonnal way or
through his own. efforts, a knowdwige of
his profession. Tliis is fundamental. The
days of supervision by gueaswork are
over, and the sooner vve realize it the bet
ter. A pleasing pt^rsonality, the ability
to shake bands in a convincing way, to
keep out of }>,')lifiee or to gi^t into them on
the right side, to lx‘ a g(xid follow, no
more make a good school superinteJident
than they make him a goofi physician.
The Elementary School
Take, for instance, the relation of the
8Uf)erintenilenl to bis elementary school.
There is a delinite body of knowledge now
available regarding elementarj scluiol
work, definite standards .h^ve been set,
and definite tests devi.sed to ascertain
whether these standards are reached.
There are standard forms fctr the keeping
of HH'ords, standards' for the distribution
of time for the various subjecta, standard
tests to measure advancement in arithme
tic, reading, spelling, handwriting, stan
dard methods for measurine the efficiency
of teac;hers. The sujierint^ndent who in
not familiar with these things and many
others of like nature is rapidly falling be
hind. .'Supervision by personality must,
giw way to supervision by pt^rsonality
plus knowledge. __\Ve must re.i»lize that
edui-ational opinion is giving away to edu
cational fact.
Subjection to Detail
,\ second fact to remember is that the
superintendent’s proper business is with
the larger policies of the school, not with
petty and time-consuming details. He
must be free to think and plan. He can
no more succewl in running his systeitt
efliciently if his time is largely devoted to
clerical duties than can the man in a
large busineiis who keeps his own books
and writes his own letters. He should
select te .chers with prorier qualifications,
s,'e that they do their work properly, and
leave much detail to them. In all our
town systems above the very smallest he
will need at least the part time services of
a clerical assistant. A definite share o£
his time should beset a.sido for profe.ssion-
al study.
I
THE WAKE COUNTY CLUB
LEADS
The Wake County Club at the Univer-
:«ity sets a pace for the other county clubs
Iiere.
This club otlers to the high school stu
dents of Wake a medal for the best essay
•on Where Wake County ^Stands (1) in
Education, (2) in Agriculture, (3) in lu-
/iustries, (4) in Good Roads; or (5) on
The Undeveloped Resources of W'ake.
The medal will cost between $5 and $10.
The essay must contain between 1,000
and 1,500 words. The best essay will be
delivered at the Wake County Commence-
Hient, April 7.
The idea is an inspiration. What bet
ter subjects can the high school students
of every county be working at? And
■what better means could be chosen to
arouse an interest in Home County
Studies?
THEY NEED IT
Figures for the current year show that
there are in the United States 500,000
teachers and 600,000 schopl board mem
bers. So writes W. E. Chancellor of the
-University. of Wooster, in the School
i^oard Journal.
We are spending a great deal of money
and thought in the attempt to train the
500,000 teachers. But how many of us
have ever given a serious thought to the
Bleed of seeing that the 600,000 school
Jjoard members are fitted for their re-
lonsibilities. We wonder how many
en of this great army were selected be-
jause of their knowledge of and interest
iin school conditions. How many of them
ire seriously attempting to improve the
chools for which they are responsible?
low many of them see in their positions
nly an opportunity for petty politics?
lost of all, we wonder what would hap.
en if we should insist on proper qualifi-
ations for school 1 loaixl membci'S as we
re coming to insist on i>roper (lualitica-
ions for teachers!
HIGH SCHOOL DEBATES
The triangular debates of the High
chool Debating Union of North Carolina
I be held throughout the State on Fri-
ay, March 31. The query is: Resolved,
hat the United States should adopt the
olicy of greatly enlarging its Navy.
VOCATIONAL GUIDANCE
, During the high school age the interest
of adolescents in the vocations and voca
tional endeavor comes to the fore. They
are always eager to do something, they
are not content to ponder and weigh and
scrutinize problems which involve little
or no activity.
This is the natural time, the logical
hour in which to present to adolescents
the necessity for self support, the honor
able position occupied by the man who is
engaged in an honorable and profitable
business ; in other words, to arou.'ie within
adolescents an appreciation of honorable
and honest toil,
A Place in Society
More than this, the relative values of
the ditterent vocation.?, the advantages
and disadvantages of each, the opportu
nity for growth and advancement within
each, the place of vocations in our Amer
ican State, mu.st all Ix' clearly .set before
the youth,
It is not enough tc> teach him how^ to
set type; he must know^ and appreciate
the social value and worth of tyiiesetting.
It is not enough that he know cabinet
making or woodworking; he must realize
how necessary is his work in the close-
knit social fabric of our American life.
A Thing Divine
The vocational education that teaches
only the mechanics of vocations, that fits
young people for mere treadmill work in
the factory, that fastens the worker to a
machine as a component part of it, is
W'orse than our pre.sent non-vocational
system.
The clang of the trip-hammer, the buzz
of the saw, the ring of the anvil, the rat
tle of the harvester, the ping of the trow
el, may all and each be but notes in the
eternal harmony of divine employment;
for we are workers together with (rod, if
only we be alive, purposeful and hope
ful and not dead as machines are. It is
a part of vocational education to point
out this divine co-partnership—God and
man working together for the welfare of
the human race.
SAFETY FIRST
How i icreasingly we are coming to
think of child welfare and how we are
daily recognizing the sanctity of child life
i OUR WEALTH.RETAINING
I POWER
I In the table that follows, Messrs. l)ea-
1 ’
ton and DeVault exhibit 1) The average
crop wealth produced |>er farm worker in
1910, and (2) the per capita farm wealth
' of the country poiMilations in the Unitel
States,
They have based their figures on the
1910 census, volumes on Agriculture,
Populations, and (,)ccupations. The first
named volume gives the crop wealth pro-
(iuced in each state ami the value of all
fann property; the second gives the
country populations outside all incorpor
ated towns; and the third, the number of
farmers actually engaged in farming in
each state—owners, tenants, wage hands,
hired men. and so on. They have omit
ted wood-lot jiroducta, and people en
gaged in forestry industries.
Not all the accumulated wealth of far
mers appears in the Census reports on
Agriculture; say, fiousehold goods and
utensils, cash in hand and in the bank,
bank stock, solvent credits, and the
like. But with these* forms of wealth
omitted, the states are on the same foot'
ing for coniparison. If it w'ere possible
to include them, our rank in North Car
olina would perhaps be even more dis
tressing.
Large Crop Values Per Acre
These-things said, wliat is our position
in North Carolina in the scale of Agricul
ture?
Our rank is high in per-acre crop-yield
ing power. In 1909, our average yield
was $22,28 per acre. Only eight states
made a better showing—Massachusetts,
Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey,
South Carolina, >lississippi, Arizona, and
Utah.
We rank ahead of all the fertile prairie
states of the middle west in this particu
lar ; because an average acre in cotton
or tobacco will produce greater crop val
ues than an average acre in cereals,
hay and forage.
We rank below South Carolina and
Mississippi, because around two-thirds of
their total crop values from year to year
are produced by cotton alone; in North
Carolina around one-third of them. We
rank ahead of both of these states in
pounds of cotton and in cotton values per
acre; as follows in 1909—North Carolina,
133.01, South Carolina,- $31.43, and
Mississippi $24.45 per acre.
Small Crop Values Per Far
mer.
But unhappily, large crop values per
acre do not mean large crop values per
farm worker. For instance, in the cen
sus year it took 605,000 farmers in North
Carolina to produce crop wealth amount
ing to $143,000,000; while in North Da
kota 131,000 farm workers produced $180,-
000,000 of crop wealtli. The per capita
c.rop producing pow'er of our faruK^rs was
$239; and in North Dakota it was $1,378.
Tliat is to say, upon an average, a sin
gle farmer in North Dakota produced
nearly six times the crop wealth that a
farmer in North Carolina |)roduced. |
In-average crop-producing pow’er per |
farmer, we are near the V)ottom of the
list Only four states ma.le a poorer
showing: Louisiana $228, Misssissippi
$319, Alabama $218, and New Mexico
$135,
fn 24 states the average crop wealth
produced per farm worker averaged more
than double that produced liy the North
Carolina farmer; in 7 states it was more
than three times our average; in 3 .states
—Nebraska, North and South Dakota—
it was more than four times; and in
North Dakota more than five times our
average. _
Machine>made and Hand~made
Crops
The leading crops of North Dakota are
wheat and oats and the 13th census re
ports their wheat crop as worth $13,33,
and their oats crop $11.23 per acre. The
same year our cotton averaged $33.01.
and our tobacco $62.41 per acre.
What, then, will account for the power
of the North Dakota farmers to produce
greater crop values per worker? AVe have
nearly as much invested in farm imple
ments per acre as they, $2.10 against
$2.14; and more work animals, cultivat
ed acres considered—one for every 25
acres in North Carolina, against one for
every 31 acres in North Dakota. \
main difTeren.ee lies in the fact that
North Dakota is the region of meilium
size farms. Our farms average 35 Culti
vated acres each; theirs 275 acres. Their
work animals average 9 per farm and
their equipment in farm implements and
machinery $590. Our farms average 1 1-3
work animals and $73 worth of farm im
plements per farm.
Small'Scale and Medium Scale
Farms
The size of their farms enables them to
economize human, horse, and machine
power. Their various grain and forage
crops distribute their labor fairly evenly
throughout the year. Our standard crops
are hand made with simple hand-tools for
the most part; their crops are largely
made with labor-saving machinery. Our
leading crops call for more than six times
the human labor, and thus reduce the
gross return per laborer and the net prof
its.
Our farms tend steadily to decrease in
average size, a fact fliat calls for more
hand-labor and less machine power. It
may mean larger crops per acre, but it
also means smaller yields per worker.
CROP PRODUCTION PER FARM WORKER
Based on the 1910 Census Volumes on Agriculture,
Populations, and Occupations.
F. H, DEATON and S. H. DeVAULT.
University of North Carolina.
Rank States
Per
Per
Rank States
Per
Per
Capita
Capita
Capita
Capita
Crop
Country
Crop ^
Country
Produc.
Wealth
Produc.
Wealth
1
North Dakota
$1,378
$2,344
25
Pennsylvania
$476
511
2
South Dakota
1,004
2,993
26
Michigan
471
909
3
Nebraska
968
3,259
27
New Hampshire
459
595
4
Iowa
884
3,386
28
Massachusetts
434
939
5
Illinois
826
2,628
29
Wyoming
405
2,093
6
Kansas
783
2,111
30
Oklahoma
383
830
7
Washington
781
1,533
31
Maryland
377
503
8
California
703
2,139
32
Delaware
349
829
9
Minnesota
692
1,642
33
Texas
321
821
10
Nevada
675
1,013
34
Georgia
314
325
11
Idaho
618
1,551
35
Rhode Island
313
1,838
12
Vermont
612
868
36
Kentucky
307
500
13
Colorado
599
1,652
37
Florida
298
321
14
Indiana
595
1,438
38
Virginia
282
425
15
Oregon
582
1,911
39
South Carolina
275
337
16
New York
557
921
40
Tennessee
259
380
17
Montana
653
1,676
41
Arkansas
255
334
18
Ohio
550
1,153
42
West \'irginia
252
365
19
Maine
505
561
43
Arizona
251
602
20
New Jersey
503
531
44
North Carolina
236
322
21
Wisconsin
499
1,295
45
Louisiana
228
287
22
Utah
494
1,258
46
Mississippi
219
300
23
Missouri
481
1,337
47
Alabama
218
231
24
Connecticut
479
1.399
48
New Mexico
135
606